Verum Invenire
by WritingConfine
Summary: Set in S3: When Mulder and Scully stumble across a secret that the Syndicate intended to to stay hidden, they are forced to run and fight for their lives. Will they be able to protect each other and expose CSM and his men? What happens when Alex Krycek and the man who murdered Scully's sister become involved? Will Mulder and Scully solve this X-file and make it out alive? R&R!
1. Chapter 1

Characters and rights belong to 20th Century Fox and Chris Carter.

This story is set sometime around Season Three.

Mulder awoke to the heavy scent of diesel fuel in the air and cold, wet concrete on his face. He lifted his head quickly, only to regret his sudden movement, as a wave of pain and dizziness hit his temple. The room he awoke in was dark and cold; he tried to piece together how he had gotten there. Mulder lifted his head slowly, careful not to onset another instance of pain. He reached up to the back of his head. Mulder felt something slightly wet and sticky on the side of his head-blood, from some sort of blunt force trauma. It was mostly dried now, but it explained the reason for the pounding in his temple.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Mulder had spent the last couple of months in contact with a man who had claimed to have proof that had recently slipped through his hands in the form of a cassette; proof on the existence of extraterrestrials and the conspiracy to conceal the truth. Mulder didn't know who this man was, as he hadn't revealed his identity; but he had recounted several of the details of the casefile that only someone who had seen the information on the cassette could possibly know. Not only did he recount the information on the tape, but he provided details on the conspiracy to murder his father as well as his partner. However, instead of murdering Scully, the conspirators had mistaken Scully's sister for her, and had shot and killed her in her stead. When Scully told Skinner to make a deal with the smoking man in return for their safety, Mulder had had grudgingly agreed that it was the best move. However, if there was another way to get his hands on the information that both of them had lost so much for, Mulder was going to take it. He was hesitant about telling Scully about his contact at first; she was having a difficult time dealing with the death of his sister, though she would never admit it. Mulder knew that she felt responsible, even though she had no reason to.

One day when Mulder was finishing a report on a recent case, Scully came down with a package for him.

"Scully, it's not even my birthday." Mulder said jokingly.

Scully ignored his comment and handed him the package. "This came for you in the mail. Please tell me it's not a new addition to your video collection." Scully said, as she dropped the package in front of him.

Mulder scoffed and ripped open the package. Scully wasn't interested until she caught a glance of the side of the document Mulder was holding. She saw a woman, not much older than her, sprawled out on a floor, with blood around her head. It was a picture of Melissa, before she had been found by first responders. Scully walked slowly over to Mulder, her eyes watery, her mouth slightly opened. Mulder looked at her with sympathy.

"I'm sorry, Scully. I didn't know this would be in the package."

"Who is it from?"

"Scully-"

"Mulder, tell me."

"I've been in contact with a man who says he knows about the information on the tape. He also has information on the deaths of your sister…and my father. I didn't know whether to trust this man's credibility…I thought he just might be yanking my chain. I asked for proof that he's legit…I didn't know that he was going to send me this."

Scully blinked and turned away quickly, brushing a tear away and attempting to regain her composure.

"Has he set up a meeting?" Scully asked.

"He wants to…I wanted to make sure he was the real deal first." Mulder replied.

"Set up the meeting." Scully said.

"Scully, I don't-"

"Mulder, you need to set up the meeting. And I'm coming. I need to find the men responsible. If there's another way, if there's some way to bring these men to justice, we need to find it."

"Scully, if I set up a meeting, I don't want you coming with me. You've been through-" Mulder began to say.

"Mulder, I'm involved in this just as much as you. I've lost my sister and it- it should have been—Mulder, that bullet was meant for me. We almost lost our lives. I'll be damned if I don't catch the bastards who did this. Please."

Mulder nodded his head and looked down. "I'll arrange for the meeting."

Mulder had arranged for the meeting and had picked up Scully from her apartment later that day. They were meeting someone who went by the name of "Klonikin" late that Friday evening in an abandoned warehouse in Southern Virginia. They had staked the area out for a good two hours after Mulder's contact hadn't shown.

"We need to go in." Scully said.

"Alright, I'll check the area out. You wait here and I'll call you when-"

"I'm going with you." Scully said.

"Scully-"

"No, Mulder-"

"Dammit, Scully, listen. We don't know what's in there. If we both go in, we make ourselves more vulnerable. Let me check the area out and leave your phone on. Once I'm in, I'll call you and you can meet me. I know what you've lost, what we've both lost. But you can't rush in there- we have no backup and the Bureau doesn't know where we are. If something happens, we need to know we have a way out and a way to call for backup. I don't know this man. I don't know what he looks like or what his intentions are. He's shown that he has inside information…but I don't know. Something doesn't feel right about this whole situation and I'm not willing to put your life in more danger than it already is and has been. If you don't hear from me in ten minutes, something's wrong."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Though dark, Mulder glanced around the room and found it to be empty. His temple was still pounding, but he had been able to at least stand without collapsing. Someone must have attacked him from behind. Scully wasn't in there. She hadn't followed him in there; he hoped she was safe and that she had alerted someone to their location. He reached around to his holster, but wasn't surprised when his gun wasn't there. As Mulder got to his feet, the door opened with a loud thud and four men quickly approached him.

Mulder staggered backwards until he hit a brick wall covered in some thick liquid behind him. He couldn't see any doors or windows from where he standing, except where the men were approaching him. The largest of the men, the one who towered at least four inches over Mulder and had at least 60 pounds on him, hit him roughly in the stomach with a crowbar, as two of the other men grabbed each of his arms and dragged him out of the room. They walked down a partially lit hallway- the only source of light were bulbs hanging down from the ceiling- every ten feet or so. They opened a heavy door and sat him in an old wooden chair, binding his hands behind his back.

Three of the men left the room, while one lingered, looking at Mulder with deep black eyes. He held the crowbar that the other man had hit Mulder with, limply in his left hand. The three men returned a moment later; two of them dragging a limp figure that was obviously unconscious. The figure had bright auburn hair and a petite frame… _Scully_.

The two men dragging Scully threw her down onto a wooden chair about ten feet away from Mulder and tied her hands behind her as they did with him. Scully bobbed her head up and down as she began to come to, as Mulder squirmed recklessly in his chair.

"What is this? WHAT IS THIS!" Mulder lashed out.

"Agent Mulder, I'm going to have to ask you to calm down, before you hurt yourself…or others." The larger man said, glancing at Scully. "You're going to answer some questions for us and if we like what you say, then there's no reason why you won't be walking out of here by sunrise."

"I don't know anything. I can't tell you anything." Mulder said, the pain in his temple throbbing.

"No, Mr. Mulder. You do know something. And you're going to tell us what you know because the alternative is not…favorable." The larger man said, as he grabbed a handful of Scully's hair and jerked her head back violently.

Scully gurgled a sound from her throat as her eyes shot open. The man released her hair and put his arm around her chest, grabbing her shoulder on the opposite side. He pulled a switchblade from his pocket and dragged it slowly across her face.

"I will kill you. I will kill you, you son of a bitch!" Mulder screamed, as he jerked violently against his chair.

"Now, now, Mr. Mulder," the man said, as he delicately glazed the knife over Scully's collarbone. "There's no need for threats—as long as we get our information, you will be on your way home with your partner…well, that's if she is fit to go home…"

"I don't have any information! My contact never showed- we know nothing! Now let her go!" Mulder yelled.

"I don't believe that you don't know anything, Mr. Mulder, you'll have to convince me." The man said, as he quickly flicked the blade across Scully's abdomen, causing her to scream out in pain.

"You son of a bitch!" Mulder screamed. "I can't tell you what I don't know!"

"This is just a flesh wound, Mr. Mulder. She won't be as lucky next time."

"What do you want?" Mulder said, clenching his teeth.

"I want the tape."

"I don't have it- you know that I don't have it." Mulder said.

Suddenly the door opened and revealed a mature gentleman in a suit, taking a long drag of a cigarette.

"I would think that you'd be smarter than this, Fox." CSM said, taking another drag. "I would also think…that with another life on the line, the life of someone you care for, would convince you to cooperate."

Mulder glanced at Scully as she squeezed her face in pain. Blood was trickling down to the floor, not rapidly, but Mulder knew that if he didn't give CSM the information he wanted, both of their lives would be in danger…even if Mulder didn't possess the information that the men thought he did.

TBC.


	2. Chapter 2

Mulder squirmed in his seat as CSM and his pawns continued to pace around the room. Scully bobbed her head up and down as she slipped in and out of consciousness. The bleeding had slowed down, but Mulder wasn't sure what they had done to her before they had been put in the same room.

"Mr. Mulder- Fox," CSM said, as he took a long drag of his cigarette. "This does not need to be difficult. Just tell me where the tape is. Then, before you know it, you and Agent Scully will be walking through these doors like nothing ever happened."

Mulder ignored the plea. He didn't have the tape. He didn't know where it was and if he had, there's no way that he would have carried it on his person.

"Don't you think if I knew where your damn tape was I would have exposed you and your scumbag friends already? I don't know where the tape is. We traded the tape for our safety…why would we risk this for something we already gave up?!" Mulder exclaimed.

The Cigarette Smoking Man looked blankly at Mulder before he carefully removed another cigarette from his pack and lit it. He took a long drag, never taking his eyes off of Mulder.

"Actually, Mr. Mulder, you're right. I don't think both of you would do that. In fact, I don't think Agent Scully would do that at all, being the more reasonable of you two. I do think, however, you orchestrated this whole plan in order to buy your safety and end up with the tape again. And Mr. Mulder, I'm not going to put up with that." CSM said.

"Look, I don't have what you want! Scully doesn't have what you want! At least let her go!"

"Mr. Mulder, I would really like to believe what you're saying. But, I need to be sure." CSM said, as he glanced at the taller of his associates and nodded silent instructions.

The beefy man put a hand on Scully's shoulder as he pulled the collar of her shirt to the side. She swayed to his side, disoriented, as he put a cattle prod to her neck and sent a shock through her body.

"You son of a bitch! Stop it! Stop it!" Mulder yelled. He was now swaying back and forth in his chair and thought he would tip over any moment.

Scully convulsed against the shock and started shaking lightly. Mulder thought her body was going into shock. Before anyone could do anything else, her wound started bleeding again.

"Mr.-" CSM began to say, as what little light was shone suddenly went dark.

Mulder heard the scurrying of feet and murmur among the men.

"There seems to be some complications. I shall return soon. Until then, my associate shall keep an eye over you two." CSM said, as he and two of his men left the room.

The beefy man who had prodded Scully walked towards Mulder, and though not visible due to the darkness, Mulder could feel his heartrate go up as the man brushed by him. He tried to wriggle his hands free from the rope that was binding him; though tight, with the element of darkness on his side and hopefully some time, Mulder was hopeful that he could remove himself of the binds around his wrists.

The associate of CSM ruffled around the room until Mulder saw a bright light being swayed. _Shit-_ Mulder thought- a flashlight. The light wasn't adequate enough to spotlight everything in the room, but if the man had decided to point it at Mulder, he wouldn't be able to get free. However, the man didn't point it at Mulder, he pointed it directly in Scully's face.

Scully squinted from the harsh light as the man's steps echoed loudly through the room. She was still lightly shaking and her lower lip was quivering, but she was still slightly out of it. Mulder continued to work on the binds until he felt the ropes loosen significantly.

"Tell me something, Mulder," The man said, as he stroked Scully's hair tenderly. "Do you and your partner-"

The man didn't get to finish, because as he looked up, Mulder had taken the rope that had bound his wrists and jumped on the beefy man, pulling his throat with the rope. He dropped the flashlight and immediately began wrestling with Mulder and the rope around his neck.

Though much larger, Mulder had the element of surprise and managed to pull the big man to the ground with the rope. As he felt the man lightening up, his grip loosened, in which the man elbowed Mulder hard in the ribcage, causing him to fall backwards. The man stood and kicked Mulder in the ribs again before he had the chance to get up. Mulder staggered backwards, putting his hand in front of him, as a means to weakly dodge another blow. The man pulled his knife from his pocket and snapped the blade open, grinning, from what Mulder could see in the shadow-cast light from the flashlight on the ground.

As the man inched towards Mulder, Mulder suddenly heard a light crackling sound and watched as the man's eyes grew wide and stared at the ceiling. His body convulsed briefly and he fell to the floor. Scully stood hunched over, both hands still bound, but now in front of her. She held the cattle prod tightly in her grasp.

"Scully…"

"Mulder-" Scully started to say, as she fell to her knees. Mulder caught her, trying to lift her up, but her body was going limp from the trauma that had been thrust upon it.

"Scully, we don't have much time. We need to get out of here. Can you walk?" Mulder said, as he checked her wound for signs of blood. Scully was lightly bleeding and her heartrate was quickened. Mulder saw her nod her head as she took in some deep breaths.

"Come on," Mulder said, as he hoisted her to her feet and put his hand around her waist to keep her up. They walked to the door, before Mulder went back and grabbed the flashlight that had fallen. He also checked the unconscious man's clothes and found a gun in an ankle holster.

He slowly opened the door as he heard creaking. He held the flashlight towards the ground to avoid alerting anyone who may be outside, but noticed that no one was in his immediate vicinity. Scully's head lolled back and forth to the side, and Mulder noticed that though she was shaking, she was also shaking heavily. He knew that she needed medical attention.

"Scully, we'll be out of here in a minute, I need you to stay with me." Mulder hoisted her up from her collapsing state, as Scully nodded her head in acknowledgement. He led her down the hallway, looking for some sort of exit and hoping to not run into anyone. He tried to pick up the pace, when a man of slightly shorter stature rounded a corner and shone a light directly in his face.

Mulder flinched against the light, and reached for the gun he had taken, dropping the flashlight in the process. It didn't help that his partner was hanging onto him, basically acting as dead weight.

"Agent Mulder, I'm not here to harm you. I'm Klonikin." The man said, lowering his flashlight. "We need to get out of here."

"Where the hell were you? We waited for hours and then were blindsided-"

"I know, I'm sorry. This warehouse is where I've been hiding for the past few days. These men showed up and I couldn't signal to you without being discovered. They're looking for me." Klonikin said.

"They didn't ask for you they want the-"

"They want the tape, yes, Mr. Mulder. But I have information that they need. Look, I'll explain everything when we get out of here. We need to go."

Mulder didn't know whether to go with Klonikin as his explanation sounded vague and lacking detail, but he heard the sound of a metal door opening about 100 feet behind him. He looked to his partner who he knew couldn't withstand any more trauma and saw two lights bobbing down the hall with the sound of hollow footsteps.

"Where are we going?" Mulder asked, as he turned to Klonikin. Scully was gaining more consciousness, but still lolled lackadaisically as she came to.

"Come on."

 **TBC. Please Read and Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

Mulder followed the man who claimed to be his contact down the hallway to a set of doors on the opposite side of the corridor. Scully was hanging onto Mulder; he was tempted to throw her over his shoulder, but he was afraid that the force would aggravate her wound.

"Mr. Mulder, we need to be more quick-" Klonikin began to say.

"My partner is injured; she can't go any faster." Mulder said, irritated.

"Mulder- Mulder, you need to leave me. I'm slowing you down, you need to go," Scully panted.

Mulder ignored Scully's comment and half dragged her to where Klonikin was standing at the doors. He was trying to punch some code into the doors but the little light on the keyboard kept turning red.

"I thought you said you've been staying here for a few days," Mulder said.

"I have been. The code must have reconfigured itself when I cut the power. This is an old military base- the main power source controls the electricity, but for security reasons, doors and access points have a backup generator…they must have reset the original code when they temporarily shut down."

Mulder heard the men who were down the hallway approaching the area in which they were standing. Klonikin showed no emotion on his face as he continued punching random codes into the keyboard. Scully was breathing heavily and slumped on the floor, leaning against Mulder's leg as the voices got closer. When the men were about 20 feet away, Klonikin leaned in to Mulder.

"If you fire your gun, everyone will know where we are. There's a window on the third floor. We can go through it, but the jump is dangerous- you could break your leg or-"

"That's a risk we're going to have to take." Mulder said, as he hoisted Scully up. "I'm sorry, Scully, this is going to hurt."

Mulder threw Scully up over his shoulder and heard her grunt in pain. Mulder could feel warm blood on his shoulder, but he had no choice, they had to get out of there.

Klonikin raised a finger to his mouth to signal for Mulder to remain quiet. He lifted up what looked like a detonator and pressed a small black button in the middle.

Mulder reflexively ducked as he heard a loud explosion about 200 feet away. The men that had been strolling towards the trio started yelling in Russian, and headed towards the explosion.

"Why didn't you just blow the door if you had explosives?" Mulder asked.

"Mr. Mulder, I read in your file that you're an Oxford-educated, psychological profiling, trained federal agent. What you heard was used for the purpose of a diversion. Do you honestly think that would have been able to penetrate a six inch concrete vault door made out of top military materials? We need to go, follow me."

Mulder didn't fully trust Klonikin, but at the moment, he really didn't have a choice. He had turned off his flashlight in order to avoid attracting attention and followed his supposed contact up a dingy concrete staircase. Klonikin led them to a small bathroom that yielded a large dirty window. Mulder placed Scully against the wall, who was panting heavily and holding her side. He helped Klonikin tug at the window, until they heard a loud creaky rustling as they yanked the glass upwards.

Mulder took a look out the window and noticed they were about 60 feet from the ground. There were window ledges and juts in the structure of the building, but nothing that would securely guarantee that they wouldn't end up as human pancakes.

"Let's go." Klonikin said, hoisting his leg over the side of the window.

"There's got to be another way." Mulder said, shaking his head.

"There is no other way, Agent Mulder. Now come on, before they find us!"

""There's no way that she can get down to the ground from here!" Mulder yelled, pointing at Scully. Scully's chest slowly heaved up and down, her eyes remaining half open.

"That's not my problem, Agent Mulder, you wanted a way out, this is the way out. Leave her and let's go!" Klonikin said, pulling on Mulder's arm.

Mulder violently smacked Klonikin's arm off of him. "Listen you son of a bitch, you contacted me and told me to meet you here because you had evidence on the conspiracy that-"

"Yes, you, Mulder. YOU. I did not tell you to drag others into this, that's your fault. Your problem. Now if you want your evidence and you want to get out of here alive, leave the broad and-"

Mulder drew the gun out of his waistband and pointed it between Klonikin's eyes. Despite the threat, Klonikin continued to lack emotion.

"Mulder, go." Scully panted. "Go. Get Melissa's killer. Get the evidence. You need to go. I'll be okay. You need to go, now."

"What's it going to be, Agent Mulder?" Klonikin said, glancing at a heaving Scully.

Mulder lowered his weapon and placed it back in his waistband. He turned his back on Klonikin, and lowered down to Scully's level, once again, hoisting her over his shoulder. He left the bathroom and Klonikin behind, going out into the new corridor that lay before him. He walked down the hallway, slowly taking in what little he could of his surroundings, due to the lack of light. As he reached further down the hallway, he realized that there were abandoned offices with glass walls and doors. He swung the first door open that he came to and walked into a large room, completely surrounded by all glass. There were no windows big enough to climb through, but something else caught Mulder's eyes…curtains. He walked further into the large room and found a couch, which he placed Scully on. The moonlight coming through the window illuminated Scully's face, which was drained of color.

"Scully," Mulder said as he stroked her face.

Scully's eyes slightly lifted open and she continued to pant heavily. "You should have left me, Mulder. You should have gone. You should have gone."

"Shhh. How did this happen? How did they get you?" Mulder asked, checking her pulse. Her heartrate was through the roof and Mulder was seriously worried that she wouldn't make it if they didn't get out of there.

"I waited the ten minutes like you told me to, but there was no signal and I my phone couldn't dial out. I left the car, that's when I saw you- or I thought it was you- run from the side door across the lot. Someone came from behind and clubbed me in the head."

Mulder felt the back of Scully's head and felt and noticed that a lump of hair was matted against the base of her neck.

"Scully, you might have a concussion. Your other wound, does it feel deep?"

"No- I, I don't think so. I don't think it hit any vital organs. But, I don't know, it broke through the dermis, it's bleeding, stitches, maybe-" Scully said, as she started to fade out.

Mulder lightly tapped the side of her face with his hand. "Scully," he said, "Scully, I need you to stick with me. I'm going to put a makeshift bandage on your wound and we're going to get out of here, okay?"

Scully nodded her head as Mulder ripped the sleeve of his shirt off of his arm and tore it into two pieces, tied them together, and lifted his partner in a sitting position. He lifted her blouse slightly to expose the wound, which extended about four inches across her abdomen and was seeping fresh blood. Mulder wrapped the bandage around her and tied the linen tightly, causing Scully to squint in pain.

"I'm sorry, Scully, but we need to stop the bleeding." Mulder said, finally securing the bandage.

Mulder placed Scully back down on the couch, as he went over to the window. He grabbed the rod from the holder and started pulling the dusty, thick, crimson curtains towards him. They all fell in a giant heap on the floor. He pulled them over to where Scully was laying, and went to grab more. When he had collected all of the curtains, he went over to the desk to find something he could cut the fabric with. He was content when he found two sharp letter openers in the second left drawer.

Mulder started to rip the curtains into sections and tie them together to form a rope.

"You're doing it wrong." Mulder heard Scully said.

"Scully-"

"Mulder, those ties won't hold our weight. Give them to me." Scully demanded.

Mulder looked at Scully until she painfully sat up and grabbed the curtain strips from her partner. She knotted the sections in a complicated looking design, concentrating vigorously at the task in hand. Mulder sat on the floor, watching his partner at work.

"The overhand knot." Scully said. "This isn't perfect, but the fabric is thick enough and it should do the trick."

Mulder tilted his head to the left and smirked.

"My father was in the Navy, Mulder. This is what we did for fun on weekends."

Scully stood up and picked up a wad of the newly constructed rope. Mulder took the majority of it, heavy as it was, and followed Scully.

"Are you alright, Scully? Are you sure you can walk?"

Scully sighed and took a deep breath. "Yeah, I'm alright."

Mulder and Scully walked back to the bathroom and dragged the curtain with them. They knew they didn't have much time and that CSM and his associates wouldn't be too far behind…especially if the lights came back on and Scully had left drops of blood like Mulder thought that she probably had.

Mulder looked out the window and pulled the beginning of the tie to the left leg of the first stall in the restroom. He began to tie the rope when Scully took this project over as well.

"It's better if we tie it on three different landing marks in case one of them fails, but two should work in this case- or we won't have enough rope."

Scully went to get up but doubled over in pain. Mulder rushed over to her side.

"I'm alright." Scully said. "Mulder, I don't think I can climb down. I feel so weak."

Mulder pulled another strip of the curtain out from the pile on the floor. "This probably isn't the safest idea…I'm going to tie you to my back; you'll have to hold on as I climb down."

"Mulder-"

"Scully, I'm not leaving you. We can do this."

Mulder heaved the curtain rope through the window and watched as it dangled towards the ground. It swayed slightly, and Mulder could tell from the way it dangled that it was about 10 feet too short.

He motioned for Scully to come over and placed her behind him. He threw the rope around her back and pulled the curtain strip tightly so that she was secured to his back. He attempted to tie the knot like she had, and secured it around them a second time as well.

"Mulder, this is a terrible idea."

"Scully, when have any of our on-a-whim ideas ever been good?" Mulder said, smirking. "I need you to hold on tight, Scully. I promise I'll make this as quick as possible."

Scully nodded as the two of them made it to the window and began their descent. Even though Scully was light, Mulder found the extra weight on his back extremely difficult to maneuver while trying to climb down the side of the building. He heard Scully panting, but was glad to hear that she was conscious and that they were almost to the bottom. When they had reached the bottom of the rope, there was about 12 feet of open space.

"Scully, I'm going to have to jump. I'm going to try and land on my hands; I need you to push forward with me so I don't get pulled back by you." Mulder said.

Scully grunted in agreement and Mulder jumped down, landed on his side with Scully attached. They both grunted out in pain, as Mulder quickly untied them to make sure his partner was okay.

"Are you alright?" Mulder asked.

"Yeah. Great job, landing, Mulder." Scully said sarcastically.

Mulder felt bad, but was glad to see that Scully was responding in a sarcastic manner because it meant that, for now at least, she was okay. He reached his hand out to help her up as he heard screaming and automatic gunfire coming towards them.

He grabbed Scully's hand and yanked her as they ran away from the bullets. Mulder found cover between two buildings, as Scully pulled away from him, keeling over and vomiting in the corner.

"Scully, we need to keep moving. Scully-"

"Oh my God." Scully said, staring at the corner.

"Scully?"

Mulder walked over to Scully, where she pointed to a dead body on the ground. It was Klonikin; he had been shot.

"He's been dead for at least 12 hours," Scully said.

"What?" Mulder asked.

"His body shows signs of decay that would suggest he's been dead between eight and 12 hours…Because the temperature is cool, the decay of the composition would be delayed…"

Just then, as they were viewing the body, two men ran up to the space where they were taking cover and started firing. Mulder grabbed Scully's hand and pulled her out of the alley-like space, when she doubled over and started shaking.

"Scully!" Mulder yelled, trying to get her to move.

As he tried to pull his partner, a black car moved up to where they were collapsed on the ground and swung the door open.

"Get in." Klonikin said.

Mulder now knew the man they were dealing with was not who he seemed, but he knew that they couldn't stay there, as he saw even more men coming at them with open fire.

Mulder hauled his partner up, shoved her in the backseat of the car, following behind her, and took off with the man who was claiming to be the dead man they had seen moments before.

 **TBC: Please review! It helps to let me know if I should continue with this story!**


	4. Chapter 4

Thank you all so much for the reviews! They help me more than you know and encourage me to continue with this story!

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Mulder, Scully, and the man who called himself Klonikin had been driving for over an hour, with no signs of anyone pursuing them. Mulder didn't recognize where he was, but he didn't ask, as he knew that the threat of CSM's men had been the biggest danger that they had faced…or at least, it had been. Scully had pointed out the body of a man who resembled Klonikin lying between two buildings; she said that the body was hours old…something that would have been "scientifically" impossible in their current predicament.

Klonikin stared straight ahead, not having muttered a word since he told Mulder to get into the car. Mulder remained in the backseat with Scully, who had been unconscious for the last hour. He knew he had to get her to the hospital, but he also recognized how risky that would be…if CSM had sent his men to search for them, that would be the first place they'd look.

Mulder shifted slightly in his seat. Scully was unconscious on his lap; he had been holding her to ensure that if she got sick again, she wouldn't choke. Her pulse was threading and Mulder knew that he needed to act before Klonikin drove any further. He reached in his pocket and took grasp of the letter opener he had held onto since their decent from the building. He slid it up his leg slowly; he didn't want to alert his supposed contact. He lifted Scully's head from his lap and reached around the driver's side of the car. He held the letter opener to the base of Klonikin's neck.

"Time to pull over," Mulder said.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?

"The base of the neck, am I right? Let me guess, there are probably about five or six of you… cloned; in some government conspiracy to conceal the truth of extraterrestrials…" Mulder rambled.

"Mr. Mulder, I would be very careful if I were you. I just saved your life, you should be thanking me." Klonikin said, his voice remaining calm.

Mulder ignored his comment. "Pull over here."

"Mr. Mulder-"

"Now, dammit!"

Klonikin slowed the car and pulled to the side of the road. Mulder didn't know where they were, but he noticed they were on a long stretch of highway surrounded by forest. There were no other cars visible on the road, and dawn was slowly approaching on the horizon.

"Get out of the car," Mulder insisted.

"Mr. Mulder, perhaps you've forgotten your predicament. If I hadn't been there to save your ass_"

"And how do I know that you didn't set us up in the first place?"

"Mr. Mulder, if I were you, I would be very careful. You have no idea what you're getting yourself into."

"Out."

"Mr. Mulder-"

"Now!"

Klonikin glared at Mulder in the rearview mirror and slowly exited the car. Mulder climbed over the console into the driver's seat, refusing to take his eyes off Klonikin.

"You're making a huge mistake." Klonikin said.

Mulder ignored Klonikin and put the car back into drive. He looked in his sideview mirror to see Klonikin standing in the middle of the road with his hands in his pockets.

Mulder continued to drive down the road for a good thirty minutes before he came to a small town called Ashwood, a place so small it probably wasn't even on the map.

Mulder knew going to a hospital was out of the question, but he looked for any sort of clinic that he could bring Scully to. He finally found a small urgent care facility in the center of town and pulled into the parking lot. There were only two cars in the lot and only one dim light from what he could tell, but he didn't have a choice. Mulder was anxious that Scully wasn't doing too well and he knew he would never forgive himself if something happened to her.

He got out of the car and slowly, but carefully pulled Scully out of the backseat. He carried her through the sliding doors and approached the front desk.

The nurse attending the desk gave Mulder a strange look and stood up.

"Sir…we're not open yet…may I ask what's going on?" The nurse said.

"My partner- she need's medical attention."

"Sir-"

"Mam, I'm a federal agent. My partner has been seriously injured and needs-"

"Sir, by the looks of it, she needs a hospital," the nurse said, picking up the phone to dial an ambulance.

Mulder reached over the desk and clicked the call off.

"Sir!"

"Listen to me, dammit! My partner and I are both federal agents and she's been seriously injured. If we go to the hospital, the men who did this to her will find us and kill her. If I could help her on my own I would, and she's a medical doctor herself but incapacitated as you can see. Please."

The nurse went to argue with Mulder when the doctor came out from behind the set of doors next to the nurse's desk.

"Lana, prep an IV and grab me a stretcher. We'll take her in Room 4 and evaluate her situation there."

"Yes, Doctor." The nurse said, as she disappeared behind the doors.

"Thank you, Doctor." Mulder said, still holding Scully.

"What is her condition?" The doctor asked, as the nurse came out with a stretcher. Mulder placed her on the lift as the doctor listened to her heart and checked her vitals.

"She's been cut with a knife to the abdomen and may have a concussion. I don't know if she has injuries beyond that but she's been unconscious for almost two hours and it was difficult to stop the bleeding from her wound.

The doctor lifted Scully's blouse to expose her wound. Mulder's makeshift bandage was soaked in blood, but it had done an okay job at stopping the bleeding. The doctor removed the bandage to reveal the cut. It was irritated and seeped blood, as Scully's breathing had become labored. The doctor looked quizzically at the cut and pressed on it with gloved hands. Though unconscious, Scully gurgled and started breathing heavily.

"Lana, bring me iodine and a blood kit. Let's run a full tox-screen and take care of this wound."

"Doctor Evans-" Lana protested.

"Now, please."

The nurse went into the medical supplies room while Dr. Evans wheeled Scully into Room 4. Mulder followed as the doctor began to grab the supplies he could from the drawers. He began to wire up an IV as the nurse came back to the extra materials.

"So, tell me, Agent-" Dr. Evans began.

"Mulder."

"Agent Mulder. What happened exactly? Why can't you go to the hospital?"

"I'm sorry Doctor, I can't say, for not only our safety but for yours as well. May I use your phone?"

"Use the phone at the end of the hallway. If you don't want people knowing you're here, I wouldn't use the front desk. People will probably be coming in the next hour or so for their ingrown nail emergencies or something of the sort. I'll be working on your partner for a while, when you're done, go in the staff room down the hall. I'll update you when I have more information."

Mulder nodded his head in appreciation and headed down the hallway. He picked the phone up and dialed the number of the only people he could trust. Despite the fact that it was 5:30 in the morning, the familiar voice answered the phone on the third ring.

"O'Connell's Heat and Air Cooling Services," the voice said.

"Frohike it's me," Mulder said.

"Is this a secure line?"

"Frohike listen," Mulder said, as he explained the situation. "And I need you to bring a few change of clothes and supplies. No one can know besides the three of you, understand?"

"Mulder, confidentiality is my middle name. I've located your coordinates on GPS. It will take us about three hours to get to your location." Frohike said.

"Thanks, Frohike. Hurry- we need to be ready to move."

Mulder hung up the phone and made his way over to the couch. It was the first time in hours that he was able to relax. He was pretty sure that he had a slight concussion and had a broken rib or two. He could probably use some medical attention, but he hadn't focused on himself since Scully had been injured.

As Mulder felt himself drifting off, Dr. Evans made his way over to him.

"Agent Mulder, I have some information for you."

Mulder stood up, ignoring the pain in his ribs and head.

"Your partner does seem to have a concussion and her wound is more severe than it looks. She seems to have nicked her left kidney slightly and the biggest threat she faces is infection from sepsis. I've given her a course of antibiotics through an IV and I'll send you on your way with some, but I wouldn't be doing my job if I didn't tell you that she needs a hospital." Dr. Evans said.

"We can't-" Mulder began.

"I know. But in my medical opinion, that would be best for her situation. Also, the bleeding wasn't simply caused from just the knife wound. From your partner's tox-screen, it appears she was injected with some sort of agent that could not be identified. The main component of the substance was a mixture of something composed of caffeine. It could not be fully identified, but I can say that the bleeding was exacerbated by the substance; when her heart rate increased, the bleeding got worse."

Mulder bit his lower lip. "How is she now?"

"She's still unconscious, but she's stable. I'm going to pack a medical bag for you with some gauze and antibiotics as well as painkillers for when she wakes up. Also, I'm going to pack three IVs for you as well. The office is going to probably going to fill up, so we're going to need for you to head to the staff room with your partner while we clean up."

"Thank you, Doctor. I don't need to tell you that this needs to remain confidential."

The doctor nodded his head. "Commander James T. Evans, Navy Seals RET." The doctor said. "I know what confidentiality is. Now, Mr. Mulder, do you have any injuries you need me to look at?"

Mulder shook his head as he heard a loud sound coming from the waiting room. He heard a loud scream and a gunshot and looked at Dr. Evans as he ran to check on Scully.

Scully was hooked up to an IV, dressed in a medical gown, still unconscious on the medical gurney. The doctor came in and started unhooking her cables.

"Lana's down. Whoever was after you knows you're here."

Mulder knew the Lone Gunmen wouldn't be there for another few hours, but he knew they needed to get out of there. He grabbed a sheet from the drawer under the sink, wrapped Scully in it, and started making his way towards the back door. With Dr. Evans behind him, he pulled his gun out of his pants and handed him the weapon.

"You're going to need to cover us. Do you have your keys? I don't want to risk that the car I came in is compromised." Mulder said.

Dr. Evans handed Mulder his keys as he cocked the weapon he had given him. The two men exited the back door as they came face to face with the man who had forced Scully and Mulder to need medical assistance in the first place.

 **TBC.**


	5. Chapter 5

Sorry for the late update- please review and let me know what you think! J

Scully awoke to the sound of trees rustling in the wind and a cool breeze that fluttered across her face. Her eyes were just beginning to open, and she felt a small twinge in the crook of her elbow. She slowly opened her eyes completely and realized that she was in some type of room in a log cabin.

Scully went to sit up but immediately put her head back down as she felt a wave of dizziness overcome her. She took it slowly, inching herself up as she took in her surroundings.

As Scully sat up, she looked around the room. The source of her pain was now evident; she saw a bag full of IV fluids hooked up to her arm. She examined the cord in which was connected to her; whoever had set up the IV had very little, if any, experience in medicine. Whenever Scully had had blood drawn, the phlebotomists had always said how she had great veins (p _robably due to her fair Irish skin and visible blood vessels_ ). Whoever had played doctor on her most likely didn't have any more experience than an eight-year old playing _Operation_.

As Scully sat up straighter, she felt a sharp pain just under her ribcage. Suddenly, she remembered… _she had been cut_. She gently lifted up her hospital gown to reveal her bandaged abdomen. Against her better judgment, she pulled back the bandage and looked at the puncture mark. As she peeled back the dressing, she was surprised to find that the wound itself had crusted over and the area around the wound was a light pink. _She was healing_.

Surveying the rest of the room, she noticed that on the nightstand next to her was an opened and half eaten bag of sunflower seeds, a sports magazine, and a pitcher of water. _Mulder_ , thought Scully, as she attempted to get out of bed.

As Scully shifted herself to the side of the bed, the door opened and in walked a familiar face.

"Frohike?" Scully said, confused.

"Scully!" Frohike exclaimed, holding a half empty bottle of alcohol. "I didn't realize you was awake, I'll go grab Mildred!"

 _Mildred_ …Scully thought. _I wonder how much he's had to drink_.

Though her head was pounding, Scully's mouth felt incredibly dry and dehydrated. She reached over to the pitcher of water, accidentally knocking it over when the cord from her IV snagged the side of it.

 _Dammit_. She thought, as she bent over to clean up the mess, when a searing pain in her abdomen caught her. She knelt to the floor, when she felt a familiar pair of arms steady her.

"Easy, Scully, easy. You don't want to open your wound." Mulder said, continuing to stabilize her.

"Mulder!" Scully said. "Mulder, where are we? How did I get here?"

"Well…you've been unconscious for about 50 hours. We're in Virginia-the mountains, no one can find us here. I was starting to get worried, but Dr. Evans said…"

"Who's Dr. Evans?" Scully asked.

"Um, well, we went to see him after we left the compound. He's the one that gave me the IVs." Mulder explained.

"A _doctor_ set up this IV?" Scully asked, as she looked at her bruised and beat up arm.

"Well, not exactly. He gave them to me and I hooked you up to them." Mulder said, looking away and running his hand through his hair.

That made much more sense. No wonder Scully's arm looked like it had been tie-dyed purple.

"But anyways, Scully, let's get you up." Mulder said, lifting Scully carefully back onto the bed.

"Mulder, what happened to the doctor?" Scully asked.

"He got shot. He's dead."

"Wait, what? Mulder, what the hell is…"

"Scully, I'm sorry, I'll explain everything in a bit, but, this was the only place where we could go. They're after us."

Scully looked at Mulder quizzically as she attempted to untangle the mess of the IV from her arm. She finally got it loose when she realized she was wearing a sparse hospital gown, making her instantly self-conscious.

Mulder left the room and came back with a glass of water. Handing it to Scully, she downed it in less than a few minutes.

"Thanks, Mulder. The fluids definitely helped but my mouth was super dry." She said, handing him the glass.

"Maybe I should look at your wound-"

"I'm fine, Mulder. I'm a doctor, I can take care of it."

"But-"

"Mulder, I know I have no idea where we are, but is there a change of clothes I can change Into? And maybe a shower?"

"The door to the left," Mulder said. "Do you want something to eat first?"

"No, I'll be fine. I just want to get cleaned up."

Scully got to her feet, feeling wobbly at first, then walked to the bathroom. Mulder left a change of clothes on the bed and went out to the living quarters.

As Scully cleaned up, Mulder sat at the kitchen table with his head holding a set of radio earphones to his right ear. Byers sat opposite of him on a laptop, deep in thought. Langley wasn't there, but Frohike sat next to Mulder, making himself useful by taking a swig of aged Bourbon every few minutes.

"Did you tell her, Mulder?" Frohike slurred.

"Not yet," Mulder said, half ignoring his friend.

"Yuh shud prob's say shumthin before she geets mad," Frohike responded.

"Don't you think you've had enough to drink?" Byers asked Frohike, lifting his gaze from his computer.

"Donchu sink you habbent?" Frohike slurred back, waving the bottle at his cohort.

Mulder looked at Byers and then back at Frohike. "I'm afraid if I tell her, she's going to get impulsive and risk her life to-"

"Mulder?" Scully said. She stood in the doorway, hair still damp, wearing jeans and an oversized plaid flannel shirt, which obviously didn't belong to her.

"How ya feelin', Scully?" Mulder asked.

"Mulder, what's going on? Tell me what?" Scully walked forward, concerned.

"Scully-"

"Mulder, just tell me, please."

"The FBI thinks we're dead." Mulder said.

"What?" Scully exasperated. She took a seat next to Mulder, across from Frohike, who was now flirtatiously waving at her. Scully ignored him.

"Cancerman, the men who were chasing us…they followed us to the clinic. We got away, but they killed the doctor and his nurse. They killed her first and he helped us get to the car but then they shot him…he died."

Scully nodded her head, still looking confused. "Okay…but Mulder, that still doesn't…"

"They burned it down- the clinic. The news reported that it was our bodies that were found in there. As far as the FBI knows, we're dead."

"No, Mulder, you-we-I…we need to do something, we need to tell them we're alive!"

"We can't do that, Scully. These men have infiltrated the FBI, they know who we are, how to get to us….they're trying to say we're dead so that no one will come looking for us…they're doing this to draw us out."

"Mulder, we have got to do something. My mother thinks I'm dead; I can't do that to her, I can't! She lost my sister not six months ago, she can't handle this!" Scully said, quickly rising from the table.

Scully had almost forgotten about her wound when she felt the sharp pain and gripped her side tightly. Mulder rose, lightly grabbed her arm and helped her back to her seat.

"Scully, I know exactly how you feel. But, if you go back there, you're putting her life at risk as well as your own."

"Mulder, my mom…she can't handle this." Scully said, turning her head to avoid being seen crying.

"Maybe we can tell her without telling her." A voice came from behind Mulder and Scully.

Mulder and Scully turned around to see Langley standing behind them.

"What do you mean?" Scully asked, stifling her tears.

"What's something that means a lot to both you and your mother?" Byers chipped in.

Scully thought for a moment, before reaching behind her neck and unclasping her little gold cross that hung around her neck. She held it for a moment and handed it to Langley.

"Tell her…tell her that I'm sorry I opened it early that Christmas morning. I wish I had waited for it to be a surprise."

Langley nodded. "We'll deliver the flowers to your…uh…funeral. We'll get the message to her."

Byers looked at Mulder. "Mulder, what about-"

"No," Mulder said. "If you go to my mother, it will be too suspicious. Get the message to Scully's mom. Hopefully this will be over with soon."

Scully looked at Mulder with concern. "Mulder-you just said that we can't go back…that they're looking for us…how are we going to get back soon?"

"Because I have something they need." Mulder said.

"What?" Scully asked.

"I know where Alex Krycek is."


	6. Chapter 6

"What do you mean you know where Krycek is?" Scully said, as she raised from the table and walked over to Mulder.

Mulder made eye contact with Byers, then looked back at Scully. "There's a man matching Krycek's description staying at Hannigan's Hotel and Conference Center near the border of D.C and Virginia." Mulder said. "We find Krycek, we find the tape."

"And how do you just happen to know where he's staying?" Scully asked suspiciously, eyeing the Lone Gunman.

Byers walked over to Scully and placed his laptop in front of her. "We've been scanning local security tape footage in airports and in cities within a 100-mile radius of the D.C. area. We crossed referenced his face with everyone going in an out of…facilities…using recognition software that Langley downloaded at a conference in Seattle last month. We didn't think we'd get a match so quickly…but…we got a hit."

Scully looked down at the laptop and put her hands on her hips, taking in a long breath. "Scully, I know Krycek killed my father and he was most likely involved in the death of your sister. I don't know why he's in the specific area for sure, but there's recently been UFO sightings near the Potomac River and all the way down to Alexandria. I don't think Krycek and Old Smokey are on the same team at the moment…but for some reason, they're both involved. There's an _invite-only_ conference at Hannigan's next week on safety procedures for sterilizing hospital wings for contagions. I have a theory that some of our old friends are going to be at this conference on so-called hospital contagions."

"Mulder, what possible reason could you think that this conference is anything but something on diseases? They have these types of conferences all the time." Scully sighed.

"Since someone wasn't so careful, Scully." Mulder said, as he pushed a newspaper photo towards Scully.

Scully picked up the photo and held it close to her face. The headline read, _Conference at Hannigan's draws medical personnel to Potomac_. Several men with brief-cases stood in front of the conference center.

Mulder came up behind her and pointed a figure in the background- a figure who was wearing a tailored suit…and taking a drag of a cigarette. Scully's eyes widened, as she looked back at Mulder and back to the photo.

"And Krycek and the Smoking Man are going to be there…" Scully said, in a half-question, brushing a lock of her hair behind her ear.

"I have a feeling they're not going to hear a lecture on sanitizing bedpans, Scully." Mulder said, taking the photo out of her hand and pinning it on the fridge.

"If Krycek's not working for the smoking man, what's he doing there?" Scully asked.

"I don't know, Scully, but I'm going to find out."

"Then I'm going with you."

Mulder tilted his head, when Scully interjected. "I'm going, Mulder. With or without you. This has affected me just as much as it has for you."

Mulder nodded. "We can't go until next week anyways, until the conference starts. We'll have to get some _alternative_ IDs and go in when it's at its busiest."

"We can get you security clearance, Mulder." Byers said, typing on his computer.

"When do we leave?" Scully asked.

"Four days. We need to get supplies and new identities first." Mulder said.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Three days later, Scully sat in the kitchen of the cabin, going through medical journals online and trying to discern whether the conference at the hotel was really a cover for a top-government project. So far, what she found didn't add up. The hospital that was being featured, Pillings General, in Los Angeles, CA, didn't have any record of existing…currently or in the past. In addition, there wasn't any information anywhere on any of the "doctors" who were keynote speakers. Scully was starting to think that Mulder might be right…maybe not about the UFOs, but definitely about Krycek's and the smoking man's involvement in some conspiracy.

The Gunman had gone back to Washington, and Mulder was out collecting supplies for their trip. On the table laid two fake IDs, a gun- government issued, and a handwritten note in Maggie Scully's writing that read, " _Crossed over_." Scully had taken this as assurance that her mom had received the little gold cross that Langley had sent to her as a message that she was okay.

Scully paused typing for a moment and took her glasses off to rub her eyes. She picked up the note from her mother and looked at it for a few moments, wishing that she could speak to her to just let her know that she was okay. As she went to look up more information, her computer disconnected from the internet and the lights in the cabin went off.

Though it was mid-afternoon, the cabin had an eerily dark feeling inside. Scully slowly stood up and tucked her gun into her holster in her jeans. She heard a crack outside and crouched behind down to avoid being seen through the windows. Crawling to her temporary bedroom, Scully snuck a peak through the window in the small room and saw two men with guns drawn, approaching the cabin.

Scully could hear her heart pounding wildly in her chest. She silently cursed herself for leaving the cell phone that Frohike had given her in the kitchen, when she heard a cracking and banging on the door. _The men were trying to barge their way in_.

Scully slowly, but carefully, opened the bedroom window and lifted herself up to the sill. Her abdomen screamed in protest, having mostly healed from her wound, but still putting up a fight when she over-exerted herself. She carefully lowered herself to the edge and jumped down the two meters to the ground, landing on her feet.

Scully heard the men inside the cabin; she heard shouting and noise coming from what she thought was the bedroom. She ducked, and carefully started to half-sprint away from the cabin and through the woods. Somewhat panicking, Scully wasn't sure how she was going to contact Mulder. On one hand, she didn't know exactly where he was at the moment, but on the other, if she stayed around, the men would find her. However, if she didn't, Scully was certain that if the men were waiting for Mulder when he came back, they'd kill him.

Finding a shrub to crouch behind, Scully went to reach for her gun, when she felt a strong hand clasp her waist and another firm hold over her mouth.

 _More to come soon! Please review-it helps me to know that I should continue!_


	7. Chapter 7

Scully stumbled back, reflexively putting her own hand over the hand that covered her mouth.

"Shhh, shhh, Scully, it's me," Mulder whispered, as he took his hand away from her mouth. "We're surrounded; don't make a sound."

Scully felt her heartbeat go somewhat back to normal as she looked at Mulder. "Mulder," she whispered, "what do we do?"

Mulder grabbed her hand and began to pull her towards another shrub, staying close to the ground as they scuttled into the brush.

Situated between two medium-sized shrubs, Mulder and Scully saw two additional men approach the cabin.

"I thought you said the woman was here." A musky voice yelled over to the cabin.

"She was- I only saw Mulder leave." Another voice said, coming out from the cabin. Scully pushed some of the brush aside so she could see the man behind the voice. A tall man, apparently taller than Mulder, stood on the cabin porch, holding an automatic weapon. With black hair down to his collar and a matching black beard, Scully noticed that the most distinguishing feature of the man was his black eyes that seemed to lack any emotion. She said a silent prayer of thanks that she hadn't been found by this man.

"She can't be far then. Check the brush around the cabin. She left these IDs and cash- she wouldn't have left these if she was going somewhere. She probably made you jackasses before you got in the cabin." The dark-eyed man said.

"Yo, Hodge," Another man, dressed in black said. "Do you want her dead or alive when we find her?"

Hodge, the soulless-looking, dark-eyed man, slowly scratched his course beard. "Bring her in alive. We can use her to get to Mulder. We're going to need him to do some…things for us. She can ensure that he'll carry out the plan."

Scully felt her heartrate increasing again, as she started breathing heavily and backed into Mulder. Mulder grabbed her hand and gave it a light squeeze. "Scully, calm down, they'll make us if we're not quiet."

Scully nodded her head and tried to control her breathing. She touched her back to feel for her gun and looked from the cabin to the woods behind Mulder.

"How do we get out of here? I've counted at least four men- there might be more." Scully whispered.

"I left the car on the side of the road about a mile past the cabin. They have two military-grade trucks up there- we'll have to go deeper through the woods until we get to the other side of the highway."

"How far is that?" Scully asked.

"About six miles."

Scully shut her eyes and nodded her head as she noticed more men flocking the cabin. "We need to move fast, Mulder, they're going to find us if we sit here."

Mulder nodded and looked behind him. "If we can make it to the river down there, the tree line should give us some cover."

Scully nodded and drew her weapon. "Let's try not to use these- we'll be outnumbered if they hear us."

Mulder and Scully carefully started backing up into the brush, careful not to make any noise. When they were a good 200 yards away from the nearest assailant, they broke off into a hunched sprint and darted past the river and tree line.

After rushing though the woods, Scully stopped and put her hand on her hips, bending over to take in some air.

"Mulder, something doesn't make sense. How do they keep finding us? No one who didn't know where that cabin was could have found it." Scully said.

"I've been wondering that too, Scully. It doesn't make much sense. The only thing I can think of is that one or both of us might be being tracked." Mulder said.

"What?"

"They might be tracking us. Not our exact location, but they're able to find roughly where we are. Once we get a little further, I want to check for tracking devices." Mulder said.

"Well what exactly are we looking for?" Scully asked impatiently. "Like the chip in my neck?"

"Yeah, it could be something like that. Or maybe even a rounder metallic object under the subcutaneous layer. Let's get somewhere with a little more cover and we can check there."

"Look where, exactly, Mulder?" Scully asked.

"Could be anywhere, but most likely somewhere you're not likely to notice it right away. It could be in a tooth or even at the base of hairline. It could be under the ribs from the back or behind the ear. Have you noticed any dental pain?" Mulder said.

"No, Mulder. The searing pain in my abdomen has kept me occupied enough to notice any new cavities." Scully said in an annoyed tone.

Mulder nodded and pulled Scully over to a more wooded area of the forest. "Open your mouth."

Instead of questioning Mulder, Scully opened her mouth and allowed him to inspect her teeth. "Well, Dr. Scully, I commend you on your excellent oral hygiene."

"Loo shee manythin Muller?" Scully gurgled.

"No, I don't see anything. It doesn't look like it's your mouth. Turn around."

Scully turned around and felt Mulder pull at her ponytail. She jumped in surprise and pain when he applied a small amount of pressure on her upper neck, where her hairline began.

"I think we've found ourselves a winner." Mulder said, as he stepped away from Scully.

Scully grabbed Mulder by the shoulder and turned him around. "Bend down, Mulder, I can't see your neck from where I am."

Mulder knelt to the ground as Scully inspected her hairline. He jumped when she applied pressure to the same place that he had applied to her neck.

"We need to get these out, Mulder. We're not going to be able to outrun these men much longer if they're tracking us. Do you think they put more than one tracker in us?" Scully said.

"Not likely. They wouldn't want to draw attention to the trackers in the first place. Any headaches, bumps, or pain could be associated with getting knocked around as you will- we weren't likely to question it. We can do a more thorough search when we get out of here."

"Well we need to get these out. Do you have a knife?" Scully asked.

"Scully…that's going to hurt like Hell."

"I have a feeling that if they catch us, it's going to hurt a lot more. Cut it out of me, Mulder. Then I'll get yours."

Mulder nodded and withdrew his pocketknife from his belt. He moved Scully's hair aside and located the small bump where the piece of metal lay under her skin.

"Ready?" Mulder asked.

"Just do it, Mulder." Scully winced.

Mulder dug the tip of his knife into Scully's neck, feeling warm blood ooze down his hand. He heard her breathe deeply and exhale sharply, but she never made loud noise or told him to stop. After what seemed to be forever, Mulder pulled his hands away and showed Scully the little round ball, about the size of a pea, that had been lodged in her head. Mulder looked at the blood on his hands, causing Scully to address his thoughts.

"Head wounds are bloody, Mulder, it's just superficial. Let me get yours, now."

Mulder got on his knees and handed Scully the knife, which she wiped off on her flannel shirt. "As a doctor, I can't believe I'm doing this."

Scully located the bump under Mulder's skin and precisely cut the instrument from under his skin. "There," she said.

Holding both little metallic balls in his hands, Mulder closed his fist and shoved the trackers into his pocket.

"Mulder, what are you doing? We should get rid of those!"

"No, let's find something to stick them on and get them off of our trail." Mulder said, as he looked around.

"Like what, a carrier pigeon?" Scully asked sarcastically.

"No, like that river over there." Mulder said, as he pointed. "A truck or car would have been optimal, but this will do."

Mulder walked up to the hastily flowing river and looked down. Probably extending a good 50 miles or so, Mulder figured if he could get the trackers to travel down the river, him and Scully could get a good head start on their pursuers. Ripping piece of cloth from his shirt, Mulder wrapped the two metal balls up and dropped the package into the river. He watched as the cloth was swept up by the river's current and headed down, away from sight.

Grabbing Scully's hand, Mulder led her further into the forest, towards the safest, nearest road.


	8. Chapter 8

Mulder and Scully continued through the woods for the next few hours, when Scully stopped and pointed to a clearing ahead.

"Mulder, I think that's the road."

"Let me go first, Scully."

Mulder pushed through some branches and looked at the path of paved road ahead of him. There weren't any cars visible, and the sky was beginning to darken. Mulder came back to where Scully was standing and pulled a small twig from her hair.

"I think we should set up a camp for the night, maybe head out in the morning," Mulder said.

"I'm feeling a little dehydrated, Mulder. You don't see a river nearby, by chance?" Scully panted.

"Do you want to camp here or walk the road a bit? We might be able to find a gas station or something." Mulder said.

"I don't know, Mulder. I don't want to just stay here. I feel like whomever is after us will find us if we're just hanging around. I say we walk a bit longer."

Mulder nodded his head and approached the road with Scully closely behind. They walked along the road for a bit, hidden slightly in the bushes so if the men hunting them searched the area, they wouldn't be easily spotted. After walking for a bit longer, they saw lights in the distance.

"Mulder, look." Scully said, as she jogged ahead towards the lights. Mulder followed her, the need for water burning in the back of his throat as hope was visible nearby. They approached the town, the first building present being a motel that was situated on the outskirts of the town.

" _Bates_ Motel," Scully said in disbelief.

"Must be fate…" Mulder said, about to enter.

"Mulder, wait. You can't go in like that. You're covered in dirt."

"Scully, sorry to break it to you, but you're not much better."

"At least let me wipe the dirt from your face. It will look less conspicuous."

Before Mulder could protest, Scully spit in her hand and began to wipe his face.

"Better, but you still need a shower."

"Maybe you can help me with that too, Mom." Mulder replied, half-joking.

He made his way to the front desk and came out a few minutes later with a key with the number 13 on it.

"Now I know someone's trying to screw with us." Scully said.

"Come on, Scully. We're here for the night and I call dibs on the shower."

Mulder opened the door to their room, where they noticed a modestly decorated, no extra frill motel room. The bedspreads were faded and the room smelled musty, like the windows had been closed for the past year or so.

"Should we call the Gunmen?" Scully asked.

"I think we should wait until we're about to leave. Let's get cleaned up and get some rest first. Then there's less of a chance of being tracked." Mulder said.

"I'll go to the supply closet and see if there's any detergent we can use to clean our clothes. Why don't you get in the shower?" Scully said, taking the room key from Mulder.

Mulder nodded and made his way to the bathroom as Scully walked the motel's grounds. It was now completely dark, and she felt herself get a chill from the cool air, exhaustion, and previous adrenaline that her body had been pumping. She made her way to a supply closet, thanking God that it was open. She grabbed a gallon of detergent, extra towels and scrub brush for their clothes. As she made her way back to the room, she heard the splintering of a branch behind her. Heart stopping, and quickly drawing her gun, Scully dropped the detergent and came face to face with a curious rabbit who was staring her down.

Laughing in disbelief, Scully went back to their room. Mulder was wearing a dingy bathrobe and had a towel wrapped around his head. He was struggling with the in-house coffee maker that wouldn't seem to turn on.

"Got the detergent. I say we clean up and leave by dawn." Scully said, tossing the extra towels on her bed.

"Our clothes will still be wet, Scully. Unless you want to blow dry them with the hair dryer over there, which, judging by the coffee maker, probably doesn't work."

"Maybe we can just put them on the heater. It's not perfect, but it'll have to do."

Scully made her way to the bathroom, showered, then piled her and Mulder's clothes in the bathtub with water and detergent. She began scrubbing the dirt from their jeans and tops, and rung them out, hanging them above the radiator near the window.

Still cold, Scully wrapped her robe tighter and opened the desk drawer, pulling out the typical Bible that one would find in a hotel.

Mulder sat on his bed, watching her intently as she started flipping through the pages and landed on a particular passage. Scully smiled briefly and continued to read.

"You ever wonder why hotels put Bibles in the drawers? It's like they're saying, while you rot in this crappy hotel, here's some light reading on the creation and destruction of mankind."

Scully ignored Mulder's comment. "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. Psalm 23." Scully said, as she closed the Bible and put it on the table. "My father used to tell me that when he would be sailing the Atlantic or on a Destroyer, he would say this to his crew to remind them that God was watching over them."

"And do you believe that, Scully?" Mulder asked.

"I believe, I believe that we need to get some rest before we are forced to get up and replay the miserable day all over again." Scully said, as she lifted the blankets of the comforter and got into bed.

"Scully, I may not have the faith in God that you do, but I have faith in you. And I never want to see you give up that faith. It keeps me going. With or without your little gold cross."

Scully turned towards Mulder, who lay across the room on his bed and smiled before sleep overcame her.

"Goodnight, Mulder."

Mulder awoke to the sound of police sirens rushing by, noticing that the sun was slowly making its way up. He walked over to the radiator where their clothes lay and felt them. Though a little damp, they were nearly dry and a lot cleaner than the previous day. He walked over to Scully, who was still fast asleep. As he was about to wake her, he sat on the side of the bed and watched her sleep. The worry lines from the day before had dissipated and he decided that since she looked so at peace, he would let her sleep.

Getting up from the bed, Mulder made his way to the phone and dialed Frohike.

"Marvin's Floral Designs, how can I-" Frohike answered.

"Frohike, it's me. We need your help."

TBC. Please Review!


	9. Chapter 9

Frohike was going to be heading up to come get Mulder and Scully within a few hours. Mulder woke Scully, and after they both showered and got changed, Scully peaked out the window and saw snow flurries starting to fall.

"Good thing our clothes are dry…mostly." Scully muttered.

"Frohike and Byers should be here within two hours. Then we can get going."

Scully reached up to grasp the cross around her neck, when she realized that she didn't have it. She tried to pass it off as scratching an itch, which did not go unnoticed by Mulder.

"This is going to be taken care of, Scully. Things will go back to normal."

"The thing is- I'm not even sure if I know what normal is at this point." Scully said, sitting on the bed. "Constantly running to… or from something…literally not knowing where you've been for periods of time, or which one of your family members will be next."

Mulder put a hand on Scully's shoulder, causing her to jump a bit.

"I'm going to go brush my teeth," Scully said as she hustled to the bathroom, avoiding the situation.

Just then, the phone rang and Mulder picked it up.

"Yeah, Frohike?"

Mulder heard two clicks and then a dial tone. He put the phone down, and ran over to the window, where he noticed a car parked not far from their door. There was a black van half concealed by shrubs and men hustling out of the back.

Mulder ran to the bathroom and lightly knocked on the door. "Scully, Scully open the door."

"Just a minute," Scully said, opening the door.

As Scully unlocked the latch, Mulder pushed his way in, pulling Scully in with him.

" _Dammit_!" Mulder muttered, as he noticed that there was no window.

"Mulder, what is it?" Scully asked, concerned.

As Mulder was about to answer, their hotel door busted open, wood splintering all over the floor.

Mulder attempted to slam the bathroom door shut, but one of the men pushed it open, knocking both Mulder and Scully to the floor. Mulder tried to reach back and grab his gun, but the man who kicked the door open now had his colleagues' help to restrain the two agents. As one of the men approached Mulder, he kicked upwards, hitting the man right in the gut. The man took his gun and hit Mulder over the top of the head with it, causing him to lose consciousness briefly.

"You son of a bitch!" Scully said, as the other man grabbed her roughly and slammed her into the wall. Scully felt the air leave her lungs as the man partially lifted her from the ground and pushed his knee into her back.

"You wouldn't have any weapons on you by chance, would you, Agent Scully?"

"Go to Hell."

The man pushed his knee harder into Scully's back, causing her to grunt in pain. He started frisking her for weapons, at first seriously, then to demonstrate the power that he had and that she lacked. The man slowly dragged his hands up her body, causing her heart to beat wildly in her chest.

" _Stop! Don't!"_ Scully pleaded, as she tried to push back against the man handling her.

This only caused the man to find enjoyment in her predicament, as he pulled her closer to him, still pinning her against the wall. At that moment, however, Scully felt herself breathe easier as the pressure the man was exerting onto her was lifted due to a brief incapacity. She risked a look behind her and saw Mulder had kicked the man to the ground…not without consequence though…he ended up getting punched right in the jaw, and was out from what seemed like would be for a good while.

"We need to go," the first man said to his associate.

The man who Mulder kicked grabbed Scully roughly and pointed a gun at her.

"One word, and it's your partner, then you. Got it?" The man sneered.

Scully nodded her head as the man led her out of the room, followed by the other man who was dragging Mulder behind them. As they reached the van, the man holding Scully let her go briefly to open the door. Risking a look behind her, Scully saw Mulder's bloody form being dragged across the pavement. Though it was broad daylight, these men didn't seem too worried about being made.

It was still lightly snowing, and Scully felt a brief chill. She shivered from the frigid air, when she spotted a white van about 20 feet away from them. No one was in the driver's seat, but she thought that she noticed the scratch on the hood of the car… _The Lone Gunman_.

Scully knew she didn't have much time and that if she didn't move fast, both her and Mulder would probably be dead. With her hands tied behind her back, she knew she didn't pose an advantage if she tried to attack him, so she fell forward and put all her weight forward on the ground. The man reached down and tried to pull her up, but as he did so, he was hit hard from behind. Scully saw Frohike standing behind him, holding a syringe that was squirting clear liquid all over the place.

The second man who held Mulder didn't have time to react and was shot with a medicated dart by Byers who wasn't far behind Frohike. Both men lay on the ground, not moving or showing any signs of consciousness.

"Frohike," Scully panted. "Get Mulder. We need to go."

Byers and Frohike grabbed each of Mulder's arms and half-dragged him over to their van as Scully rolled onto her side and pushed her knees against her stomach so she could pull her hands in front of her. Not having experienced too much trouble from it recently, the wound in her side exploded with pain, causing her to fall back against the ground. Frohike came running up to her as Byers grabbed the car. Cutting her hands lose, Scully swallowed the nausea that was building and went into the back of the van with Mulder.

"Scully, you alright?" Frohike said.

"Yeah, I uh- I'm okay."

"How did they find you again?" Frohike asked, genuinely curious.

Scully shook her head from side to side as she thought of ways they could be tracking them. There was the phone call last night, but they were literally on the outskirts of town. There had to be something that they were missing, something they'd have to figure out before the men after them tracked them down once more.


End file.
